The risk of termination is why APWireless exists. Their premise is simple – APWireless purchases the rights to a telecom landlord’s rent for an agreed period of time, in exchange for a large lump sum payment to the site owner. APWireless offsets the risk of termination by owning a large portfolio of assets whereby their risk is diversified and spread over thousands of leases. Unlike the average site owner, APWireless can afford to lose a fraction of their rental stream due to their size, expertise, and ability to negotiate fair market rates. In short, they can afford to take the calculated risk.
APWireless’ strategy is to acquire a diversified portfolio of long-term real estate investments to collect steady and predictable cash flows while offering site owner’s financial solutions to secure their future. When the agreement with APWireless expires, the site owner begins to receive that cash flow again, often at a higher market rate due to successful negotiations between landlord and tenant.
APWireless eliminates the risk of losing the rental stream for the site owner, should the wireless operators decide to remove their equipment and leave the site. They give the landlord a new income stream upfront that they can invest, which allows the site owner to release the equity in their lease and reinvest the money into something more profitable. Whether they reinvest in their business, home improvements, paying off their mortgage or travel the world, invest in their pension, or pay their children’s tuition fees, the benefits of gaining upfront capital are evident in previous deals made by the company.
Being a large scale landlord who operates independently of the mobile operators and tower companies, APWireless encourages telecom landlords to educate themselves on what is a fluid market. In their experience, telecoms agreements are not at all standardised. Rents and the rights of the tenant and property owner vary, yet many landlords are unaware of this. If asked by a tenant to amend the established lease terms, landlords should know exactly what these changes mean from a commercial and legal perspective. Without proper attention you may be impacting the terms which you have previously accepted and enjoyed.
From a commercial lease standpoint, an atypical clause found in operator leases is what drives APWireless’ business model. Operators normally include termination language in their leases, with short-term notice periods as brief as 30 days. APWireless aims to bring awareness to the fact that telecom leases are an unstable form of income; it is not guaranteed in the long-term. Despite the sturdiness of these structures and the volume of subscribers relying on these sites to access the network, the risk of termination remains real due to the termination language in the lease.
In their transactions, APWireless works with site owners, their solicitors and financial advisors to ensure the landlord has clarity around what they are entering into. Experience has shown the team at APWireless that telecom landlords often lack the specialist current market information required when negotiating with their tenants. They equally recommend landlords closely review any paperwork received from their telecoms tenant. For a property owner with a telecommunication site, APWireless would ask; are you abreast of ongoing market changes that can impact the financial performance of your telecoms mast site?